NEW YORK, CMC – New York Governor Kathy Hochul says the state is continuing efforts to support Caribbean and other asylum seekers, help them find shelter, and connect them with critical social services as they arrive.
Hochul said the state’s efforts come as New York Attorney General Letitia James has called on the Biden administration in the United States to immediately grant work authorization permits for Caribbean and other migrants new to the United States.
Many of the refugees arriving in New York from the southern borders of the United States are nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela, and Nicaragua.
The New York Governor said the state’s efforts include US$250 million in funding already sent to the city, progress resulting from continued advocacy with the federal government, and additional National Guard deployments.
“Since asylum seekers first arrived in New York, we have been providing significant humanitarian aid as New York City works to meet their legal obligation to provide shelter,” Hochul said. “We will continue our efforts to provide financial support, personnel and equipment, and continued advocacy for federal assistance.”
As a part of the US$1 billion in funding Hochul secured in the Fiscal Year 2024 State Budget, the governor advanced US$250 million to the city to reimburse their costs.
She said this support will continue as the city makes additional financial expenditures.
The governor said the US$250 million payment to New York City will be used to financially support Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers (HERRC), sanctuary sites, respite renters, and welcome, intake, and navigation centers that provide immediate assistance to asylum seekers.
She said funding in the FY 2024 Budget provides a 29 percent reimbursement to New York City for allowable costs associated with operating these programs.
Hochul said eligible costs include, but are not limited to, Staffing, security, maintenance, and cleaning; critical social services provided at program sites; shelter costs; food and personal supplies or services (such as clothing, linens, hygiene items, beds, diapers, laundry services, etc.); transportation and interpretation services; and information technology (IT) supplies and support.
The governor said a US$25 million investment was included in the FY 2024 Budget to voluntarily relocate 1,250 families – approximately 4,375 individuals – who have already applied for asylum.
She said this funding is in addition to more than US$700 million in the FY 2024 Budget allocated for temporary shelter at hotels and mass shelter sites.
At this time, Hochul said the city had identified 17 families who are willing to participate and eligible to participate and are in this state-funded program and that the state will continue to support relocation for additional families as they opt into the program.
She said participants in this program, on the path to work authorization in the United States, will be relocated and matched with social service agencies that can help them adjust and resettle. At the same time, New York State pays for their rent.
In addition, Hochul said after she met with Tom Perez, Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President of the United States, federal officials have increased their assistance to New York in recent weeks following months of advocacy from her and local leaders.
She said state, federal, and city officials toured federally-owned sites at Floyd Bennett Field and Fort Wadsworth in New York to assess their suitability for sheltering asylum seekers.
Hochul Administration officials will also meet with US Department of Interior officials to discuss federally-owned land that could be appropriate for shelter.
The governor also announced the deployment of additional New York National Guard personnel and assets to asylum seeker sites in Erie County in New York.
The deployment to Erie County builds on more than 1,800 National Guard personnel currently providing logistical and operational support to shelters in New York City.
More than 30 of the hotel-based shelter sites in New York City are staffed exclusively by New York State National Guard personnel, and an additional 18 are primarily staffed through these State personnel.
Hochul said a shelter site on state-owned land at Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens, New York, will open soon and will have the capacity to house up to 1,000 asylum seekers, and a shelter site that the State of New York fully pays for will open shortly on Randall’s Island in New York City.
She said the state has already loaned New York City sites at the former Lincoln Correctional Facility in Manhattan and a state-owned building at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, both opened in June and house more than 1,000 asylum seekers daily.
As part of a coalition of 19 attorneys general, James sent a letter on Thursday to the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas urging the US administration to resolve the delays and bureaucratic inefficiencies that are preventing migrants from finding work and making it more difficult for states to provide sufficient resources to support migrants.
“For generations, immigrants have come to New York seeking new opportunities for themselves and their families, and recent arrivals are no different,” said Attorney General James. “But bureaucratic delays and a lack of work permits are depriving new immigrants of the chance to create a better life here in America.
“Moreover, these delays are hurting our economy by depriving businesses of a much-needed source of labor. Immigrants helped build the Empire State [New York], and I will continue to fight to ensure they are treated with dignity and have a fair shot at the American dream,” she added.
While many newly-arrived migrants are eligible for work authorization and eager to find employment, James said long processing delays have left many unable to support themselves and their families.
She said this has placed an increasing and unsustainable burden on states offering support services to ensure migrants do not go without food, shelter, medical care, and education.
The New York Attorney General said businesses are also experiencing increasing demand for workers in critical industries like food service, retail, transportation, and health care.
“Expediting work authorization for migrants will help meet these demands and reduce the risk that workers will be subjected to depressed wages, poor working conditions, or other violations of their rights,” James said.
The coalition also noted that while a significant portion of migrants are immediately eligible for work permits, processing delays have left many waiting ten months or more for authorization.
“Wait times are particularly long for those who require a fee waiver, as they cannot submit their applications online,” the statement said. “Of those migrants who have managed to secure employment authorization, many have lost their jobs due to the expiration of their work permits while renewal applications are pending.”
The attorneys general urge the federal government to remedy these problems and explicitly request that DHS grant work authorization when new arrivals remain in the United States, address inconsistent lengths of permitted time allowed in the United States, and streamline renewal.
They also want the federal government to renew work authorization automatically permits whenever someone’s allowance to remain in the United States or other immigration status is restored; and make work authorization applications with a fee waiver available online to streamline and expedite processes.
Joining Attorney General James in sending the letter are the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.
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